In 2009 we witnessed a rare occurrence when Sony Animation's Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs managed to turn a popular children's book into an even better movie. The film followed inventor Flint Lockwood (voiced by Bill Hader) from being an outcast child inventor to becoming an outcast adult inventor; only now he's accompanied by a pet monkey named Steve (Neil Patrick Harris) and plays with much bigger toys. One of them, a food replicator called the Fldsmdfr, short circuited out of control and caused gigantic food to fall from the sky. Craziness ensues and Flint gains some unlikely friends including local celebrity Brett (Andy Samberg), cop Earl (Terry Crews), and spunky weather woman Sam Sparks (Anna Faris). It departed from the mythology of the beloved children's series, but it did so with originality and gusto making the film a definite must see for kids and adults alike.

Yesterday, Sony Animation held a special event to showcase footage of the highly anticipated sequel -- which hits theaters this September -- hosted by its directors, Cody Cameron and Kris Pearn. I will admit I was rather skeptical before seeing it for myself, since I absolutely adore the first film as well as the book series, but my fears were unnecessary as I quickly found out Cloudy 2 carries the same heart and humor that made the first one so great. It does this by introducing an outrageously fun element that kids will want to literally eat up: Foodimals, animal/food mutations that have become the new residents of Swallow Falls. The animation is crisp, vibrant and beautiful, and the cast members' talents are on full display with fresh, cheeky lightheartedness.

The best part is, this feels like a monster movie for kids. That's all thanks to the approach the film makers took with their new creatures. To pitch the idea of Foodimals to the producers, Cameron took fruit and vegetables and crafted them into characters which he then photographed in his backyard. He demonstrated his carving skills to us, forming critters out of pickles and bananas as well as giving them voices. The creators are hardly able to contain their excitement and passion for the franchise, and their dedication is apparent in what we were shown of the film itself. We were also introduced to Barry the strawberry (who Cameron lends his voice to) a Foodimal that joins Flint & Co. on their new adventure which picks up without skipping a beat.

Flint and his friends have had to move away while their home, Swallow Falls, is being cleaned after the great food disaster. The group find new jobs, including Flint, who starts at Google-meets-Apple think tank called Live Corp. where inventors have a coffee station for every ten feet of the office floor and volleyball courts nerdy geniuses unite to suck at sports together. Sounds like a great place for Flint, but Live Corp. CEO Chester V (who happens to be Flint's idol as well, and is voiced by Will Forte) may not have the best intentions in mind when he asks our hero to go on a top secret mission.

Apparently, the Fldsmdfr machine survived and has created an island oasis inhabited by the Foodimals... which will continue to grow to catastrophic proportions and destroy the world as we know it. To save Swallow Falls and Lady Liberty from ultimate doom, Flint and his friends travel back home to brave Tacodiles, Shrimpanzees, Sasquash, and 36 other pun-filled creatures to reclaim the Fldsmdfr and save us all.

Watch the trailer below, and be sure to catch Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 in 3D when it hits theaters on September 27th, 2013.